Sleeping with the Fishes
Sleeping with the Fishes by Mary Janice Davidson is the first book in her new mermaid series, something you probably guessed already from the cover. ;-)
Meet Dr Fredrika Bimm, a different kind of mermaid...she's not buxom and blonde, her hair is green (although most people see it as blue), and you won't find her singing out on rocks in the bay or even swimming in it.
Fred prefers to avoid the sea, and instead swims in her parents' pool or the tank at the New England Aquarium where she works.
At the age of almost thirty Fred's parents decide to tell her the truth about her heritage. Her biological father is a merman. Of course Fred had already figured this out for herself years before, growing a tail in the water was a bit of a clue after all...especially when her "father", Sam could barely survive in the shallow end of the pool.
Fred has kept the secret of her mermaid heritage from most people all her life. Her parents know and her best friend Jonas, but no one else has ever got close enough to her to find out the truth.
Until now.
Fred's life is about to take an interesting twist with the arrival of Dr Thomas Pearson at the aquarium. He is enlisting her help, whether she wants to or not, with the problem of the rising toxin levels in the bay. He is also very attractive and unlike even her closest friend Jonas, he sees her true hair colour. Fred is attracted to him but the habits of a lifetime mean that she keeps him at a distance.
His arrival is followed almost immediately by that of High Prince Artur of the Black Sea. He is also on a mission to resolve the toxin problem and is also demanding Fred's help in the matter. Prince Artur is, as his name suggests, one of the Undersea Folk and even more worryingly for Fred, her ruler. He also makes no secret of his attraction to her and is resolved that she should be the one to be his queen and rule alongside him when the time comes.
Fred has no interest in being anyone's queen and although she doesn't deny she is attracted to him she believes the best way to resolve matters is to hook up Artur with Thomas and let them work together to solve the toxin problem. She can then get back to caring for the fish in Main One (the tank she is in charge of), or at least in trying to resolve their hunger strike issues.
Unfortunately things are not that easy and the late night arrival of Thomas whilst she is swimming in the tank in her mermaid form reveals her secret to him. Fred unfortunately is unable to swim without her tail, despite numerous lessons, she is also allergic to seafood and gets seasick on boats.
Thomas is shocked but as a complete mermaid geek he is overjoyed to know her secret and immediately falls for her. He is also pleased to meet and question Artur (who takes his own dip in the tank, courtesy of Thomas) despite their being rivals for Fred.
And so Fred finds herself working with the two of them, in between fending off their advances, as they work together to solve the mystery of the toxins.
They are assisted in their endeavours by Jonas who helpfully keeps Fred's boss Dr Barb out of their way whilst Artur is hanging around areas of the aquarium that he shouldn't. Of course his assistance isn't totally selfless, for Jonas has been harbouring a six year crush on Dr Barb, who unfortunately has jumped to the conclusion that he is gay. This leads to an amusing back story that at times I actually found more enjoyable than the main story.
If you are looking for resolution of the main love triangle in this novel then think again. There is at least one sequel to follow (Swimming Without a Net) and like the Undead series this one looks set to follow the same pattern...and in more ways than one.
If you liked Betsy you will probably like Fred - they are remarkably similar and Artur has more than a passing resemblance, at least temperament-wise to Sinclair. Jonas as well seems rather similar to Marc.
All in all it is a nice start to the series, I am just hoping that the characters will get to develop in their own ways and not in the same ways as their Undead counterparts.
RATING : 
(if you need an explanation of the hearts ratings see
my homepage)
Links to online stores
Also by Mary Janice Davidson: Undead Series and Mermaid Series
Visit Mary Janice Davidson online here